Meeting with EU High Representative Federica Mogherini
Yesterday I met with EU High Representative Federica Mogherini in Brussels to take Australia-EU cooperation to a new level.
We marked the end of negotiations of the EU Australia Framework Agreement, which will provide a strong basis for developing our cooperation on a range of foreign and security policy matters.
We discussed ways in which we can bring economic growth, jobs and prosperity to Australia and the EU, including through a potential Australia-EU Free Trade Agreement.
We signed a Crisis Management Agreement in recognition of the proven value of Australian and EU cooperation in responding to international crises.
It is important for Australia and the EU to continue to stand for the values we share.
We are both committed to countering the surge of violent extremism in the Middle East. We agreed to intensify our cooperation to counter the activities of terrorist groups such as Daesh, building on the launch of the first EU–Australian Counter Terrorism Dialogue held in Brussels in November 2014.
We discussed our common approach in response to Russia's aggression in Ukraine and agreed that there must be a political solution to the crisis based on respect for Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Australia noted the EU's leading role in P5+1 negotiations with Iran over its nuclear programme, and welcomed progress towards an agreement by the end of June.